1. Field of the Invention
The prewsent invention relates to a suspension for a vehicle such as an automobile.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The suspension of a vehicle such as an automobile is generally constructed of several link members extended between the vehicle body and a wheel supporting member such as a spindle or an axle bearing which supports a wheel to be rotatable about an axis of rotation. For example, a double wishbone type suspension has two sets of wishbone arms each including a pair of link members joined at a pivot point on the side of the vehicle supporting member and arranged as vertically spaced so as to provide an upper and a lower arm. Further, another link member is generally provided for restricting the toe adjustment of the wheel. In co-pending patent application No. 339,120 filed Apr. 17, 1989 by the same applicant is disclosed an embodiment of a suspension for a rear wheel constructed of five separate links and adapted to effectively suppress the rolling of the vehicle body in turning of the vehicle under acceleration and deceleration.
In such double wishbone suspensions or multi-link suspensions, in some arrangements of the extending directions of the respective links it is probable that in the bounding and rebounding of the wheel the rubber bushes incorportated in the pivot points at opposite ends of the links are wrenched, and the riding quality of the vehicle is thereby deteriorated. In general, the central axes of those links which principally support the wheel supporting member from the vehicle body intersect several certain phantom straight lines positioned on an inboard side thereof so as to allow the wheel supporting member to swing up and down for the bounding and rebounding movement of the wheel and a common phantom straight line on an outboard side thereof to allow the wheel supporting member to turn about such a common phantom straight line to adjust the toeing of the wheel, while the link which principally operates to maintain or change the toe of the wheel and therefore operates a tie rod or a control arm intersects none of those phantom straight lines. Therefore, in the bounding and rebounding of the wheel the link operating as a tie rod or a control arm applies a restricting force against the pivoting movement of the wheel supporting member, and therefore the rubber bushes incorporated in the end portions of the links, particularly those incorporated in the end portions on the side of the wheel supporting member, are apt to be wrenched, thus sometimes obstructing smooth pivoting movement of the links and causing deterioration of the riding quality of the vehicle.
In Japanese Utility Model Laying-open Publication 59-39205 filed by the same assignee as that of the present application it has been proposed to arrange the control arm in a strut type suspension so that the pivot axis of the control arm on the side of the vehicle body passes through the pivot point of the strut bar on the side of the vehicle. In the suspension of this prior proposal the damaping function of the rubber bushes incorporated in the pivot points of the control arm and the strut bar on the side of the vehicle body is improved, and thereby the riding quality of the vehicle can be improved.
However, even in such a suspension it is still not possible to dissolve the wrenching applied to the rubber bush in the upper mount pivotably supporting an upper end of the shock absorber. Further, the above-mentioned prior proposal is only applicable to the strut type suspension.